Petersburg Catholic

St. Petersburg Catholic coach Dan Mancuso knows all about the growing pains Wymore coach Victor Floyd is experiencing.The Barons beat Wymore, 50-0, on Friday, putting a damper on Wymore's homecoming at Otey Field. But Mancuso remembers last season, when St. Pete Catholic finished 1-8 - its lone victory a 40-30 shootout win against the Bobcats.''I know what their coaches are feeling right now,'' Mancuso said. ''We were where they are last year at this time. We knew we had a good chance for a victory tonight.

Ryan Green , one of the most coveted running backs in this the Year of the Running Back in the state of Florida, has committed to Florida State for the 2013 recruiting class in what his father, Vader Green, said was an extremely difficult decision. "Yes, Ryan officially did it tonight," Vader Green said of his son's commitment to FSU and with that Ryan Green becomes the 12th commitment to the 2013 Seminoles recruiting class. "He's been tossing and turning with the decision and he was really torn between Notre Dame, Florida State, Auburn, Clemson, ... his sister graduated from Florida State and so he decided to go that route.

QB Bobby Borcky scored on a 20-yard run to begin the scoring and propel host Lake Highland (1-0) past St. Petersburg Catholic (0-1) 23-0. Eric Fernandez also rushed for a touchdown, and Cody Leiffer caught an 18-yard scoring pass from Borcky, the son of Highlanders Coach Tim Borcky.

TAMPA -- Much of the beauty of Thursday's Class 3A state semifinal between Lake Highland Prep and St. Petersburg Catholic was in its struggle. From tough defense to cramping desperation, the teams played on valiantly through regulation and two 10-minute periods of overtime. With no score, they extended the game as far as it could go -- to penalty kicks. The end came on the fourth round of penalty kicks, when St. Petersburg Catholic goalkeeper Maggie Dalessio thwarted an attempt by the Highlanders.

A thunderstorm that swept through Central Florida on Friday evening forced the postponement of three high school football games near downtown Orlando.The sudden but fierce storm caused the postponement of games between Boone and Oak Ridge, Winter Park and Edgewater and St. Petersburg Catholic and Lake Highland Prep.The Class AAAAA, District 5 game between Winter Park (3-4, 1-3) and host Edgewater (3-3, 1-3) will be made up at 4 p.m. today at Edgewater.The District 5 game between host Boone (2-4, 1-3)

ST. PETERSBURG Catholic rallied from a 3-0 deficit with two touchdowns in the second half to defeat host Trinity, and spoil homecoming for 550 fans.The Saints (1-6), who were hoping to snap a four-game losing streak, scored on a 26-yard field goal by Chad Williams, with 6 minutes to go in the third period.St. Petersburg Catholic (4-2) wasted no time and took the lead on the ensuing kickoff when James Falkingham returned the ball 86 yards for a touchdown. With 4:05 remaining, the Barons added their final touchdown on a 4-yard scoring pass from Aaron Pancoast to John Thiel.

Mr. and Mrs. Jack DeFonso, St. Petersburg, announce the engagement of their daughter, Jill Ann, Windermere, to Christopher Jon Ralph, Windermere, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Ralph, Indialantic. The wedding is planned for April 8. She graduated from St. Petersburg Catholic High School, St. Petersburg, and University of Florida, Gainesville. He graduated from Melbourne Central Catholic High School, Melbourne, and University of Florida.

Lake Highland Prep jumped to a 19-12 lead after one quarter and rolled to a 62-47 victory against St. Petersburg Catholic on Tuesday night in the Class 2A, Region 3 boys basketball semifinals. Jason Rich led Lake Highland, racking up 22 points, 12 rebounds, three blocks and three steals. Jordan Bartlett added 10 points and 11 rebounds, Drew Whitaker had 11 points, nine rebounds and three assists and C.J. Marimon had 11 points and three steals. The Highlanders (20-11) held Catholic to eight points in the third, when the Barons' coach was ejected, with two technical fouls for unsportsmanlike conduct immediately following each other, for arguing about officiating.

QB Bobby Borcky scored on a 20-yard run to begin the scoring and propel host Lake Highland (1-0) past St. Petersburg Catholic (0-1) 23-0. Eric Fernandez also rushed for a touchdown, and Cody Leiffer caught an 18-yard scoring pass from Borcky, the son of Highlanders Coach Tim Borcky.

Two weeks after sending six teams to the state boys basketball tournament, Central Florida also dominates the list of finalists for the 2006 Dairy Farmers Mr. Basketball and Coach of the Year awards. Four of the six Coach of the Year finalists led area schools to the state tournament: Matt Hixenbaugh of 6A runner-up Winter Park (28-5), Reggie Kohn of Lake Howell (26-5), Chris Mayberry of First Academy (24-7) and Matt Benefiel of 1A state runner-up Lake Mary Prep (32-1). The other Coach of the Year winners by classification are James Rowe of Cocoa (28-1)

CLASS 3A CHAMPIONSHIP AT THE LAKELAND CENTER TIME: 3:30 p.m. RECORDS: Florida Air Academy 31-0; Jacksonville Ribault 24-7. THE BUZZ: FAA, ranked No. 1 in the state poll and the Sentinel Super 6, vies for its fourth title since 1998 and third perfect season since 2000-01. The Falcons were 31-0 in 2000-01 and 29-0 in 2002-03. Guard Walter Hodge (6-0/Sr.) had 26 points -- right on his average -- in a 64-59 semifinal victory over St. Petersburg Catholic (24-6) that was FAA's closest call of the season.

MELBOURNE -- There was a players' meeting this week at Florida Air Academy with one purpose: to get guard Evka Baniulis to start shooting the ball. As a result, Class 3A's top team just got more dangerous. Baniulis shot again and again and finished with a career-high 43 points that included 11 3-point baskets. Eustis could not catch up in a 78-52 Florida Air victory in the Class 3A, Region 2 final at Melbourne Central Catholic. "The first thing I was thinking is `shoot,' " Baniulis said.

FORT LAUDERDALE -- Matt Cermak has waited four years for the opportunity, and he hopes to cash in on it today. Cermak and his Melbourne Central Catholic teammates advanced to this evening's Class 3A boys state soccer championship at Lockhart Stadium following a 2-0 victory against St. Petersburg Catholic on Friday. "I've been here three years in a row and haven't gotten a ring yet," said Cermak, a senior defender who recorded his first assist of the season on the game's second goal. "Our defense is committed.

SUMMARY: St. Petersburg Catholic (2-0) scored 35 first-half points and handed host Lake Highland Prep (1-2) a 49-23 loss. STAR: St. Pete Catholic quarterback Billy Tapp completed 13-of-14 passes for 234 yards and two touchdowns. TURNING POINT: Up 21-0 with 5:51 left in the first half, St. Pete Catholic recovered an LHP fumble at the 30-yard line. The Crusaders ran the ball back 30 yards for a touchdown to make the score 28-0. KEY STAT: St. Pete had 230 first-half yards. Highland had only 83. EXTRA POINTS: Receiving an LHP punt, St. Pete fumbled the ball and the Highlanders recovered on their own 35. . . . On an LHP punt, a high snap bobbled by punter Joe Beucher gave St. Pete the ball at LHP's 48. . . . SPC's Ryan Batty caught five passes for 94 yards.

LAKE CITY - The suspense and exhilaration of its first state tournament appearance quickly turned bittersweet for Taylor High on Friday in a Class 3A boys state soccer semifinal.The Wildcats found themselves overmatched and dropped a 5-1 decision to St. Petersburg Catholic at Columbia High School.``This is going to be a great lesson when we come back next year,'' said Taylor goaltender Daniel Galarza, who found himself defending the nets against a St. Pete Catholic squad that immediately established its superiority against the Wildcats (13-9-3)

MELBOURNE -- Melbourne Central Catholic, ranked No. 1 in the state by the Florida Sports Writers Association, used balanced scoring and tough defense Thursday night to shut down Trinity Prep 53-29 in the Class 2A, Region 3 girls basketball quarterfinals. MCC got 13 points from Christine Ross and 10 from Tina Thorpe. Erin Kirkwood led the Saints with 14 points, but no other Trinity player scored in double figures. MCC will face St. Petersburg Catholic or Tampa Academy of Holy Names in the semifinals Tuesday.